Chapter 39
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Katya
Warmth is the first feeling I recognize as my peaceful sleep shifts into a slow consciousness.
Strong arms are wrapped around my middle, holding me tight against a wall of toasty skin.
I breathe out slowly, becoming more and more aware as my eyes remain pleasantly shut.
Leon is spooning me from behind, my butt tucked against his groin and our legs tangled together under the sheets.
We slept together, I think to myself, feeling my lips lift into a closed smile.
We had sex for the first time, it was incredible, and then we slept cuddled up to each other the entire night.
I didn’t wake up because he accidentally pulled my hair or elbowed me in his sleep, and Leon didn’t make a peep as far as I can recall, meaning he doesn’t snore.
Or if he does, it’s not loud enough to rouse me.
It was a perfect night’s sleep for me, and I hope it was just as tranquil for him. I think I would have noticed if I woke him up accidentally, but Leon has been trained to move quietly and go unnoticed, so maybe I wouldn’t have.
I can’t tell by the pattern of his soft breathing if he’s woken up or not yet, but I want to find out. Just as I make a move to slowly turn around and face him, a loud thud makes him stiffen—and me flinch.
A happy woof is the first sound to follow.
My eyes crack open and I sit up, clutching the blanket to my chest like a lifeline. Leon, by contrast, groans and remains lying on his side, only perching up on his elbow to look toward his bedroom door. Apparently being caught in bed by the kids is no big deal to him after the first time.
But I quickly realize with horrifying clarity that it’s not just the kids this time.
“Daddy, look!” Leo shouts, swinging his arm back to point at the open door. “Papa here! Kat, Papa come to see me.”
“Us,” his brother corrects quietly.
“Yeah, us,” Leo agrees cheerily.
Princess Spaghetti wiggles in Bastian’s arms, reaching over to try and nip at Leo as the two boys stand near the foot of Leon’s bed.
Dante stands behind them like a protective shadow, too polite to enter the bedroom without permission.
He’s in the doorway, keeping his distance while maintaining an even expression.
If he’s surprised to find us in bed together, he makes no effort to show it.
“I see that,” Leon acknowledges, sitting up straighter now. “Did he wake you up or did you find him all on your own?”
Leo takes in a big breath like he’s about to explain the complicated harrowing tale of how they all came to be where they are, when the deep rumble of his papa’s voice stops him in his attempt.
“I went to check on them when I came in and no one was awake. Leo was already tugging Bastian out of bed, and my appearance seemed to wake them both up further. They insisted on finding their new puppy to show me, and then we went to Katya’s room and she wasn’t there.
” His tone is factual, not giving away how he feels about finding me here, but obviously soft when speaking about the kids.
“And I tell Papa that Kat prob-bab-lee here!” Leo finishes grinning proudly. “Daddy help nightmares, right Kat?”
“Right,” I reply through a small cough, hoping my eyes aren’t as wide open as they currently feel.
It’s only a white lie, and it doesn’t feel wrong to fib in this case.
The kids are far too young to explain the adult relationship blossoming between me and their father.
At least, not in a way that can be come up with on the spot.
Leo beams at being told he’s correct, but no one else makes a move to speak.
Well, this isn’t awkward at all.
“How did you two sleep?” I ask, looking down at the two little boys who have cemented themselves as some of the most important people in my life.
“Super good. I dreamed about Princess Spaghetti,” Leo replies, leaning toward Bastian to kiss the pup on the head.
“I bet that was very nice.” My lips tip up, glad to hear his joy as always. “And you, little love?”
“Good.” Bastian shrugs. “Papa says we can help him make breakfast.”
“Oh, he did, did he?” Leon drawls, sharing a look with his father. “And what is your papa, who burns toast, going to help you cook?”
Dante chuckles at his son like he’s a kid pouting rather than a grown man snarking. “I picked up some stuff on the way here. Everything is cooked, they just get to build their own breakfast sandwiches.”
“That was nice of you,” Leon replies, sounding almost reluctant. “Seems like you planned this visit thoughtfully despite not giving me a call.”
“I did attempt.” His father arches a brow, leaning against the doorframe and crossing his arms. “You didn’t pick up, and when I called Gino, he informed me that your guards reported you went to bed early. So unlike you, Son.”
“Do you two need a minute?” I ask, looking between the men with hesitation. “I could take the kids downstairs…”
“No, no,” Dante replies, holding up a hand and offering me a small smile to smooth away any tension. “I’ll get these two started on breakfast while the both of you get a moment to wake up.” Looking back at Leon, he adds, “We’ll talk later. Work stuff.”
“Papa, can you hold Princess, she’s wiggly?” Bastian asks, lifting the puppy up to Dante as he heads for the door to leave.
“Princess Spaghetti,” Leo corrects with a huff. He doesn’t follow his brother, though. Instead, he walks around my side of the bed with his hands on his hips and a determined look on his face. “Kat, you have to kiss my head good morning like you always do.”
My heart melts at his sweet request, watching as his little elbows dig into the mattress, trying to make himself taller so the top of his head is within reach.
“Of course, sweet boy,” I whisper, bending over the side of the bed to brush my lips against his soft mop of hair. “Now go get some breakfast with your papa, okay? Daddy and I will be down soon.”
“Okay.” He grins, skipping toward the door.
Following his path, I’m surprised to see Bastian pass him on the way, walking over to take his place. He doesn’t say a word as he stands on my side of the bed, looking up at me with wide, innocent eyes.
“Good morning, little love,” I tell him, cupping the side of his face and kissing him on the top of the head just like I’ve become accustomed to.
I hadn’t realized it was a daily occurrence, but it makes sense.
I’ve been waking them up with little hugs and greeting them with gentle kisses on the head or squeezing their little hands softly each morning.
“Don’t let your brother give Princess Spaghetti too many bites of egg or bacon, hmm?
We have to give her the special puppy food soon. ”
“I won’t let him,” Bastian agrees dutifully, dipping his head bashfully as he leaves the room.
When they’re out of sight, a sigh leaves me and I collapse back into Leon’s pillow with a huff. My hands cover my face and I can feel how warm my cheeks are under my palms. “I can’t believe your father walked in on us like this.”
Dante Moretti, famed Capo of The Outfit just saw me laying in bed next to his son, presumably after a night of fucking him. There’s no way he believes Leon and I shared a bed simply to make my nightmares subside.
“Oh no, walking in on his fully clothed son in bed next to his fully clothed wife,” Leon teases, chuckling to himself. “However will my father who’s walked in on multiple of my siblings actually fucking survive?”
A full blown gasp flies out of me. “No,” I burst out, turning to look at him with wide eyes. “That didn’t really happen, did it?”
Leon seems to find my scandalized expression amusing.
He laughs and leans forward, kissing my forehead.
“Trust me, baby. We’re the least horrifying thing he’s seen when it comes to his kids.
It’s not like he found us here midday, making out and about to get busy.
He found a married couple asleep in the same bed. ”
“Go back,” I instruct, needing to know more. “He seriously walked in on…how, when, why?”
I don’t know his siblings very well yet, but I know them more than I did before marrying into the family.
Jade and Rayna text me the most, but others occasionally check in as well.
It’s been a busy time trying to adjust to this new life, and I don’t exactly have time to make more than ten new friends.
Still, I hear about them through stories from Bastian and Leo, or in texts from the girls.
Shaking his head, Leon can’t hide his smile. “It’s not that surprising, is it? We were a house of nine boys, a father, and an uncle at one point, you know? That’s a lot of space to be shared by testosterone-filled men who are prone to carnal acts.”
“Well, when you put it like that,” I say, exhaling through my nose. “I only lived with one boy, and I’ve seen far more of Ares than I’d ever like to admit or remember. He’s more obnoxious than your brothers, though.”
Leon arches an eyebrow and I wince, feeling guilty for my word choice.
“I mean, he does it on purpose. He likes to mess with people and freak them out. He’s still a good stepbrother, as far as I’m concerned. He cares about Gaia a lot, and he’s always been nice to my mom, despite having issues with his own mother figure in the past.”
“I figured that’s what you meant,” Leon says, not bothered by my rushed explanation.
“It’s just that you have no idea the kind of menaces my brothers could be.
Armani has a higher body count than anyone I’ve ever met, and he likes to get as many pretty people naked as he can manage.
Dad once walked in on him with four girls and a guy.
He had to just walk away and try to scrub it from his memory, but Armani was banned from the pool house for a full year after. ”
“Oh, wow.”
Leon nods, clicking his tongue. “Elio has done his fair share of damage to our father’s psyche too. He got caught in his car when he was only fifteen. He was supposed to be working on the engine and he was not.”